Corporate headquarters is the part of a corporate structure that deals with important tasks such as strategic planning, corporate communications, taxes, law, books of record, marketing, finance, human resources, and information technology. Corporate headquarters takes responsibility for the overall success of the corporation and ensures corporate governance. It is sometimes referred to as the head office, which is the location where the executives of a business work and where many of the key business decisions are made. Generally, corporate headquarters acts as a core when the business is operating.
The corporate headquarters includes: the CEO (chief executive officer) as a key person and their support staff such as the CEO office and other CEO related functions; the "corporate policy making" functions: Include all corporate functions necessary to steer the firm by defining and establishing corporate policies; the corporate services: Activities that combine or consolidate certain enterprise-wide needed support services, provided based on specialized knowledge, best practices, and technology to serve internal (and sometimes external) customers and business partners; the interface: Reporting line and bi-directional link between corporate headquarters and business units. Most other divisions and branches report to the corporate headquarters and staff may visit there periodically for training or other instructions". The corporate services are often relocated into a separate legal entity called shared services center. Research shows that the city in which a company is headquartered has a significant influence on the company's activities, including its business practices and its corporate philanthropic giving.
